The Grand Archive returned to its quiet rhythm, though whispers of the Glitch Wraith incident spread quickly among scholars. Raka lay awake in the guest quarters, staring at the ceiling carved with constellations of glowing ink. The photocopier sat in the corner, faintly humming, almost like it was dreaming with him.
Sir Kuroak snored loudly, croaking in his sleep about biscuits. Arzathor remained vigilant by the window, wings folded tightly, staring at the twin moons. Kael leaned against the wall, polishing his sword in silence.
Raka muttered, half to himself, "A giant ink-tank printer General… Epsonias. That's gonna be a nightmare. I've seen how long those things last before running dry…"
TING!🟦 [Quest Accepted!]Title: Into the Star Toner MineObjective: Travel to the mine and secure the Star Toner.Reward: Material for Photocopier Mk.∞Status: Ongoing
⛰ The Journey to the Star Toner Mine
The group departed at dawn. The path led out of the lush plains and into rocky mountains. Along the way, strange signs of corruption appeared: patches of the world missing—mountain cliffs sliced off clean like unfinished polygons, streams flowing into invisible voids.
Kael shook his head. "Every step we take, this world feels more… unstable. If your machine really is the cause, Raka, then why should I help you?"
Raka sighed. "Because if the Demon King keeps rewriting everything, there won't be a world left to argue in."
Arzathor grumbled, "At least the human speaks truth."
Kuroak leapt onto a boulder. "And besides! Without Raka's copies, we'd have no biscuits, no patches, and certainly no chance at defeating those dreadful printer Generals."
The group finally reached the entrance: a jagged maw of stone. Strange glowing ink stains seeped from within, forming patterns like circuit boards.
TING!🟦 [Location Discovered!]Star Toner Mine — Ink That Fell From the Heavens
🕳 Inside the Mine
The tunnels twisted like a maze. Walls shimmered faintly with embedded crystals, glowing with liquid ink. Raka felt the blueprint in his pocket stir, symbols rearranging themselves like they were "updating."
"Feels like the copier's hungry," he muttered.
Suddenly—
TING!🔴 [Enemy Encounter!]Inkspawn SwarmHP: █████ (60%)Status: [Leaking]
A swarm of creatures oozed out from the walls—inky slimes shaped like discarded printer cartridges, their bodies dripping with toner.
Kael charged forward, slicing them apart, but they only split into smaller ones. Arzathor's fire seared them, but new spawns dripped from the ceiling.
"Copy time!" Raka panicked, shoving a crystal shard into the copier. WHUUMMM—!!
TING!🟩 [Item Created!]Toner Bomb — Explodes into cleansing ink, effective against corrupted creatures.
Raka tossed it into the swarm. BOOOM! The mine shook as the explosion drenched the slimes in bright white ink, erasing them from existence.
Kael stared wide-eyed. "…That was… effective."
"Yeah," Raka wheezed, "like liquid paper on steroids."
🖨 Boss Battle: Epsonias, Guardian of the Endless Print
At the mine's heart, they found a cavern filled with glowing toner pools. In the center stood a towering machine—an enormous humanoid printer with ink tubes pulsing like veins, a massive paper tray for a chest, and a face shaped like a printhead.
Its voice boomed in grinding mechanical tones:
"I AM EPSONIAS. ENDLESS INK. ENDLESS PRINT. ALL SHALL BE DUPLICATED. NONE SHALL RUN DRY."
TING!🔴 [Boss Encounter!]Epsonias — Guardian of the Endless PrintHP: ██████████████████████ (100%)Status: [Infinite Supply]
The floor vibrated as Epsonias spat out sheets of glowing paper soldiers—armored knights made of printed manuals.
Arzathor: "It generates its own army!"Kael: "We'll never win if it keeps printing them endlessly!"Kuroak: "Raka! Overload the machine!"
Raka's hands trembled as he loaded the copier. "Okay… let's see how you like a firmware update!"
WHUUMMM—!!
TING!🟦 [Skill Unlocked!] Copy: Jam ProtocolEffect: Forces a mechanical entity into paper-jam status.
Raka slammed the glowing paper against Epsonias.
⚡ CRUNCH! ⚡The giant printer screeched as its gears jammed. Sheets crumpled and jammed its tray. Its HP dropped:
HP Epsonias: ███████░░░░░░░ (40%)
But Epsonias roared, bursting free from the jam, its ink veins glowing ominously. It initiated its ultimate attack:
[Overflow Mode: Endless Print Storm]A blizzard of paper and ink flooded the cavern.
Raka stumbled, his HP blinking red. "Ghh… I can't… hold on…"
Just then, the blueprint in his pocket flared with golden light. A new line of symbols appeared—half code, half scripture.
TING!🟦 [Quest Branch Unlocked!]Upgrade Path: Photocopier Mk.∞ (Stage 1)Requirement: Fuse Star Toner with Blueprint.
Raka shoved the glowing toner crystal into the copier. The machine roared to life, brighter than ever before. He pressed the button—
WHUUMMM—!!
TING!🟩 [Ultimate Item Created!]Reset Scroll — Forces corrupted machines back to default state.
Raka hurled the scroll at Epsonias. A burst of white light engulfed the boss. Its arms froze, its army dissolved, and its massive form shuddered before collapsing into a harmless pile of empty cartridges.
HP Epsonias: ░░░░░░░░ (0%)
TING!✨ [Boss Defeated!]Loot: Star Toner ×1, Printer Gear Relic, System Log Fragment
🌑 Aftermath
The cavern fell silent. Raka picked up the shimmering Star Toner, its liquid surface swirling like a galaxy.
Kael lowered his sword, staring at him. "…Perhaps your machine is more than office scrap. Maybe you truly are the world's last chance."
Raka exhaled, clutching the toner. "Or maybe I'm just in way over my head…"
Arzathor looked grim. "If the Demon King controls the glitch… then Epsonias was only another test. Worse awaits."
Sir Kuroak happily stuffed discarded papers into his satchel. "Then all the more reason to prepare! Onward, friends! The Mk.∞ awaits us!"
As they left the mine, Raka felt the copier pulse warmly in his hands, almost alive.
He whispered to himself, "If I keep pressing this button… will I save this world? Or delete it completely?"
TING!🟦 [Quest Updated!]Title: The Mk.∞ AwakensObjective: Gather materials to upgrade the photocopier.Progress: Star Toner ✔ | Cosmic Drum ✘ | Holy Wrench ✘
🌟 [End of Chapter 3: The Star Toner Mine and the Endless Print] 🌟